INTERNATIONAL DELIGHT CAFE, Bellmore and Rockville Centre.The confection here falls somewhere between ice cream and gelato: Like gelato, there's very little air whipped into it, but most of the flavors have a fat content (12 percent or more) that put them in the ice-cream category. An avowed chocoholic, owner Toni Rollandi makes a dozen-odd chocolate flavors, including Dolomite (an Italianized rocky road) and gianduia, a bittersweet blend of chocolate and hazelnut -- think grown-up Nutella. (Credit: Jin Lee)

What makes ice cream worth going out for is the use of real vanilla, fine cocoa and fresh fruit. Most important, it takes an ice-cream chef with a burning passion for frozen desserts. Here are more than two dozen shops that consistently deliver sweet, creamy goodness in the face of summer swelter. They are worth the trip. --ERICA MARCUS/erica.marcus@newsday.com...

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PAZZO GELATO, Garden City Park: On any given day house-made gelato, with many of the ingredients imported from Italy, includes at least dozen flavors. The pistachio tastes deeply of nuts; the dark chocolate is practically black.(Credit: Newsday / Erica Marcus)

Ice cream best bets on Long Island

March 31, 2015 10:32 AM

What makes ice cream worth going out for is the use of real vanilla, fine cocoa and fresh fruit. Most important, it takes an ice-cream chef with a burning passion for frozen desserts. Here are more than two dozen shops that consistently deliver sweet, creamy goodness in the face of summer swelter. They are worth the trip. --ERICA MARCUS/erica.marcus@newsday.com